Grand Valley students are tapped for induction into National Honor Society

April 11, 2009 09:25 pm

— ORWELL — Just about every high school student can join a club, group or team that fits his personality and interests. Anyone who is athletic will most likely join a sports team; musically talented students may belong to the band, choir or drama club; and someone who loves the outdoors might participate in the Future Farmers of America. One organization however, is a mixture of all these personalities and more. The National Honor Society brings together students who show qualities in service, leadership, scholarship and character.
At Grand Valley High School, March marks the month when “tapping” for the National Honor Society takes place. Tapping means that current NHS members will silently touch a new member on the shoulder, indicating that he has been selected to join the group. This year two seniors and five juniors were tapped. The seniors were Genna Yeater and Robert Nock; and the juniors were Kaitlyn Baird, K.T. Beals, Andrea Girman, Ian LeRoy and Logan Nye. Once new members were tapped, they made their way to adviser Gary Baker's classroom and were congratulated by Baker and the current NHS members. After all the new members were present, a small celebratory breakfast was held.
Each student of the Grand Valley chapter of the NHS was required to submit an application to be considered to join. Although grades are vital when applying, there are several other areas that factor into qualifying for NHS. Community service, extracurricular activities, awards and recognition, and work experience are all essential on the application.

On March 17, the annual National Honor Society induction ceremony took place in the GV auditeria on the stage, where the existing NHS members led the ceremony. Hope Krieg began the evening by introducing the National Anthem, which was then sung by the current NHS choir members consisting of Krieg, Pallavi Iyer, Myriah Lewis and Brian Starkweather. Siera Holley then read the criteria for NHS. Lewis followed by reading a candle poem about the four NHS candles that represent character, scholarship, leadership and service. These four candles surround a center candle which represents the eternal light of knowledge. After that, Starkweather lighted the center candle.
The virtues were read by Holley, stating that although candidates must have a grade point average of 3.0 to be eligible for NHS, they must also have service, leadership, scholarship and character virtues. Iyer, Leeann Harrer, Holly Mate and Lauren Prax each spoke more in depth on those attributes. Following their speeches, Iyer, Harrer, Mate and Prax then lighted the candle which represented the virtue they had elaborated on.
After the candles were lighted, Lewis introduced each of the candidates. When a candidate was introduced, Starkweather handed each a flower and unlighted candle and walked the candidate to the table where the virtue candles were lighted to sign his name in the Grand Valley NHS book. The current members then formed a circle around the table, and the new members made an outer circle around them. The candles the candidates had been given were lighted by the old members as they said the NHS pledge: “I pledge myself to uphold, the high purpose of this society, to which I have been elected, striving in every way, by word and deed, to make its ideals, the ideals of my school.”

At the conclusion of the ceremony the NHS members and their guests were treated to cake and punch. Congratulations to all the members!

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